The Fundamentals of Influencing Up (09/30/2025)

September 30, 2025

Happy Tuesday!

It’s the last Tuesday of September and the last Tuesday of the third quarter.

Which means that you have a quarter of the year left!

I, personally, am stoked about the opportunities that lie ahead for us, and am ready to make the fourth quarter matter. If you are with me (or even if you aren’t quite there), know that I plan to make this newsletter your secret weapon to help you stay informed, inspired and engaged as you move forward faster in the fourth quarter.

Let’s get on with it!

Make it a great Tuesday and remember …

You are Remarkable!

Kevin 😊

Just Because You Say it, Doesn’t Make it So

Read the headlines and the pronouncements and the trend is clear. More work is taking place in-office than any time since the pandemic shutdowns.

But announcements don’t always match actions, and the data says that is the case now too.

Take a look at this graph from a Wall Street Journal article (based on the data from The Flex Index).

Since the start of 2024, the number of days required in-office across over 8,700 companies has increased 12%. The number of days worked in the office is up about 1% in that same span. There are lessons here, and you are smart enough to identify some for yourself. Here are a couple of my thoughts, that perhaps are helpful to you.

  • Why the call for more time in-office? There are many reasons, but I believe this is the biggest one: Many senior leaders who are still pining for the “good-old days” pre-Covid. They have understandable reasons for that wish, and I grant more grace to that view than most, but grace and understanding don’t change this fact: the way people view work has fundamentally changed, and you won’t change their perspective with a policy pronouncement.

  • There are options. Even in a job market that is tighter than it has been, people, especially those with strong skills, will leave if pressured to return to office too much.

  • Many leaders agree. According to a survey done this summer by BambooHR, nearly half of senior managers would take a pay cut to work from home.

  • The world is different now. Trying to put the potion back in the bottle won’t work, and neither will getting everyone back at work all the time. It won’t happen because the world of work and the way people see it has changed forever.

While some organizations may be able to encourage people to come back more frequently, that fact is that Nicholas Bloom, the Stanford economist who has been tracking these trends since 2020, finds that Americans are working from home about 25% of the time – a number that is basically unchanged since 2023.

One more thing – if the reason you want people back is greater productivity, you have three choices:

  • Learn how to increase productivity in the new world of work. You can have highly productive virtual or hybrid teams – many are getting productivity gains. But it requires new thinking and new skills. (If you want help with that thinking and those skills, reach out to us – we can help.

  • Use AI productivity increases to offset any losses you might see from hybrid work. At least then you can keep your talent.

  • Resign yourself to higher turnover and higher recruitment costs. Not adjusting to the new world will come with these outcomes. The choice is yours.

Spend time, not just with my insights, but creating your own about why there is a difference between what companies are saying and where people are working. Thinking about it both globally and for your organization will be worth the time and effort.

The Fundamentals of Influencing Up

Whether you are trying to help your leadership see what you see or are trying to sell to the C-Suite, you are influencing up. If you are in sales, you may want to be better at both. Regardless of your exact goal or situation, these fundamentals need to be remembered.

Thanks for reading. Please reply at any time with questions or feedback for our team.

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